Stages are where your Smash battles will take place. The lineup of stages differs between the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U versions of the game. For the Nintendo 3DS version, stages are mainly drawn from other handheld games, whereas the Wii U version features stages inspired by games that appeared on home consoles.

Nintendo 3DS Stages:

3D Land
A stage based on Super Mario 3D Land. The screen will scroll automatically, causing all kinds of things to appear.

Tortimer Island
A stage inspired by Tortimer Island from Animal Crossing: New Leaf. The configuration of the island and its palm trees changes with each battle.

Prism Tower
The tower in Lumiose City from Pokémon X and Pokémon Y. The platforms that the fighters battle on float around the tower itself.

Spirit Train
The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks serves as the basis for this stage. Players will duke it out on a moving train. The train cars will change out while the train runs, and Dark Trains and Armored Trains also appear. And of course, the train's engineer is none other than Link.

Rainbow Road
The Rainbow Road course from Mario Kart 7 is the inspiration for this stage. Platforms will hover above the course, touching down at random places during the race. Watch out for Shy Guys racing in their karts!

Wii U Stages:

Pilotwings
This stage is inspired by both Pilotwings and Pilotwings Resort, which takes you on an aerial tour of the runway and Wuhu Island as you battle. Be careful not to fall when the planes switch!

Town and City
A stage based on Animal Crossing: City Folk. The platforms go back and forth between the town and... errmm...the city. Depending on the actual time, the stage switches between day and night. The visitors are also different each time.

Mario Galaxy
Mario Galaxy is a bit of an odd stage. The planetary gravity is tightly bound to the core, so jumps straight off platforms or directly upward will tend to send fighters in a diagonal direction.

Stages Shared Across Versions:

Battlefield
A standard stage consisting of a large plaform and three smaller ones that float above it. Though its design is simple, it enables limitless strategies.

Wily Castle
The base of Dr. Wily from Mega Man 2 can be seen in the background of this stage. At times a Yellow Devil will launch out from the castle and interfere with the battle.

The Yellow Devil can be defeated by attacking its weak point: the eye. Defeating the Yellow Devil will cause a giant explosion that will damage other fighters.

Boxing Ring
Punch-Out!! is the inspiration for this stage. You're able to fight both inside the ring and out. Try using the ropes on the left and right of the ring to perform giant jumps, or attack the light fixture above the ring to send it crashing down.